Jeana Ripple

​AIA, LEED APAssistant Professor, UVA School of Architecture

Jeana Ripple is an Assistant Professor at the UVA School of Architecture. Her background as a professional hacker and computer science engineer informs a rigorous attention to detail, complex systems, and a willingness to take risks in her approach to design. Her research-based practice, Ripple Architecture Studio, aims at a combination of innovation, resourcefulness, and impact. Projects range from performance-based material systems to envisioning the factory of the future to regional health and infrastructure solutions. Working with the imperative that new technology be directed toward critical efficiencies, projects connect construction and material systems to labor and economy. Ripple seeks out diverse collaborations including scientists, policy-makers, manufacturers, artists and biologists. Her work reflects a fascination with many scales of structure (from micro- to infra-) and their implications on our cities, communities, and ecologies. R.A.S. has received numerous awards including a DC AIA Unbuilt award for excellence in materials and innovation, a DC AIA Unbuilt design award, and finalist entry in the international TEX-FAB SKIN competition. The work hasbeen internationally exhibited and published.

Jeana’s teaching focused on material systems and new technology in architecture has been recognized by the 2015 ACSA/AIAS New Faculty Teaching Award and the 2015 BTES Emerging Educator Award. Her courses include Parametric Structural Design, graduate foundation studios, and the Design-Driven Manufacturing undergraduate studio. She is a founder and lead investigator of the Design-Driven Manufacturing initiative at UVa together with economic development expert, Suzanne Moomaw. Ripple is also a principle investigator in collaborative research with biomedical engineering focused on visualization of complex data systems.

As a designer at Studio Gang Architects in Chicago from 2008 - 2012, Ripple led the design team for the MoMA “Foreclosed” exhibition, a structurally innovative residence in Manhattan Beach, and a 91-acre urban park in the center of Chicago’s museum campus. She was a member of the design team for the Lincoln Park South Pond Pavilion, ARCUS Center for Social Justice at Kalamazoo College, and the Blue Wall Visitor’s Center. Her professional work with Studio Gang and PLY Architecture has been exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Art Institute of Chicago and the Young Architects League in New York. Ripple is a licensed architect and LEED accredited professional.